Marina wants more accountability on Marina Heights project

The stalled Marina Heights subdivision will come under closer scrutiny from city officials.

The Marina City Council on Tuesday approved two more extensions for the first two phases of the project, which was first approved for 250 acres of former city land on Fort Ord in 2004.

Although most of the former Army buildings were torn down and replaced with new streets, utilities and home sites, none of the planned 1,050 homes has been built. Consequently, the city has approved several extensions, starting in 2008 as the economy sank, with the development group Cypress Marina Heights.

This time, city residents pressed for more answers about what is going on with the empty expanse created by the stalled project. The City Council voted to ask for more timely information from the developer.

"It's a cliche, but 'trust but verify' is a simple way of putting it," Mayor Bruce Delgado said Wednesday.

The council unanimously approved six-month extensions sought by Charles Lande, managing president of the Marina Heights development group. But the city will receive a report about how the project is being marketed to would-be builders within 30 days and another 30 days before another extension hearing.

"We want to make sure he is doing his due diligence, rather than just stepping before the mike and saying so," Councilwoman Nancy Amadeo said.

She said Lande, who was at Tuesday's meeting to field plenty of questions, obviously wants to get the project moving after pouring millions of dollars into it.

The city doesn't have any real options but to wait, council members said.

"If he can't do it, it is unlikely we would do anything different or better," Delgado said.